Susan Joy inspired the name and the heart of my events passion, she was the catalyst in my charity work, she would have turned 60 today if she was not taken too soon. At the age of 48 Susan Joy died too young after living with an acquired brain injury for 11 years, and advanced breast cancer for 6 years.
It is not the most joyous post for me to write, or to gather inspiration for – in fact it is something that I have wanted to write about for quite a while yet not really felt that I had it in me. However this Christmas, as the date of her birthday loomed I was inspired to think about her in a different way than usual.
How would she have wanted to celebrate her 60th birthday? What would she have looked like at this age? I was only 16 when she had her car accident and the woman we knew changed forever. It is hard to say how her tastes might have changed if that moment when she lost control of the car had never happened.
In my mind she is always young, pretty and petite. She is vibrant, a little bit of a hippy and most content at the beach or on a picnic. Since the thought of planning her 60th birthday came to me just before Christmas I ventured on my usual virtual search for celebration inspiration. This time it was a little sombre, also a little exciting at the thought of dreaming about how we would have celebrated this milestone as a family.
It was not hard to find the colours, the pictures, the inspiration that instantly reminded me of her and painted a picture in my mind of this party that I will only ever experience in my dreams. Hopefully she is out there somewhere and can see what I have gathered.
It is a little bit beachy, in the outdoors, lots of bright blue and orange and sunshine. Family, friends and colleagues gather as they always did around her…the food is fresh and amazing, prepared with love by friends and the atmosphere is good old fashioned carefree fun and laughter, just the way she liked it…
Image notes:
Row 1: this Katie Daisy image always reminds me of my Mum, these pictures of my childhood remind me of the special time I am enjoying with my own little angel.
Row 2: Decor8 colour inspiration, Celebrations at Home beach table setting and Patchwork Harmony picnic ideas.
Row 3: A Creative Mint colour and table styling inspiration.
Row 4: Polka Dot Bride picnic setting.
Row 5: Style Me Pretty wine inspired gathering.
